


Godmothers for Guidance

by Wheely_Jessi



Series: Found Families [2]
Category: Call the Midwife
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Babysitting, Childhood, Cultural Connection, F/F, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, Found Families, Gentleness, Godmothers, Holidays, Hugs, Languages, Mild Hurt/Comfort, References to bullying, Support, heritage
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-03-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:33:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22736500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wheely_Jessi/pseuds/Wheely_Jessi
Summary: A short four part companion piece to my previous two-parter, 'A Home from Home', in the same canon divergent universe, continuing thoughts on the possibilities of Patsy and Delia's connection to the Turner children.The first two chapters are inspired by an idea for an alternative thread sparked off from the 2019 Christmas Special Hebrides trip. This story is technically set in the same timeframe as 'A Home from Home' - over the Christmas period of 1964 - but I've tweaked things a little in this one to suggest Patsy and Delia actually met May earlier than that, so they could help out with the kids here.The second two focus on aspects of Series 9.
Relationships: Bernadette | Shelagh Turner & Patrick Turner, Bernadette | Shelagh Turner/Patrick Turner, Delia Busby & Patsy Mount, Delia Busby/Patsy Mount
Series: Found Families [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1634818
Comments: 13
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I know this isn't the update you might be expecting from me, but writing (even creatively) is proving tricky in the months following my PhD - possibly because a large part of it was on CtM so fic hasn't really felt like the escape it used to be. But I want to get back to it, so a shorter story seemed a good idea, and the most recent episode made me desperate to get down this idea that's been nagging at me since I watched the Christmas Special. (This concept is prefaced with the fact that I mean no disrespect to Sister Frances and she is soon to feature in one of my longer fics because I actually have a soft spot for her.) Also posting today was a good incentive, on the anniversary of the Fall of Singapore, as Patsy talks about her childhood.
> 
> But this is all comfort and fluff - so I hope you enjoy.
> 
> With thanks to Catching_Up for feedback and confidence and Jojo_In_The_Shadows for putting up with my brain these past few months. You're both such great friends and a testament to this lovely community. My other fics will be back as soon as I can get my brain to behave.

‘Thank you for having them, Patsy, Delia,’ Shelagh breathed the moment they opened their front door.

The two younger women immediately drew their obviously frazzled friend into a tight hug. ‘It’s no bother at all,’ Patsy promised. ‘We’ve both been working overtime of late, and were actually wondering what we’d do when they insisted we take leave, so you might call this mutually beneficial timing.’

Patrick joined them on the doorstep, chuckling at this pragmatism from his former colleague. ‘Well, that’s certainly one way of looking at it,’ he agreed. ‘And _we_ are certainly grateful. Lovely new Sister Frances was more than willing, but ranks are depleted enough as it is with this Hebrides venture, and May jumped at the chance to see you both again.’

‘That’s quite the endorsement,’ Delia put in, sharing Patrick’s chuckle, ‘although I imagine the attraction was more Patsy.’

Shelagh shook her head at this. ‘I honestly think it’s equal,’ she said with a smile. ‘The girls get just as excited about the Welsh vocabulary you include in your letters as the Cantonese – which I must confess leaves me feeling rather inadequate, given that I have no Gaelic.’

Delia beamed, but blushed, deflecting. ‘Sounds as though you’ll have your work cut out with the women over the next ten days, then, if they’re anything like my Mam,’ she quipped.

Patsy and Shelagh turned a similar shade of puce at the reference to this formidable figure, and then the older woman nodded. ‘I fear you might be right,’ she replied sheepishly, before brightening, ‘but at least I can be sure our own children are safe with you. On that note, are we all right to fetch them from the car and then be off?’

‘Of course,’ they chorused, nodding, ‘and we’ll come with you to carry Teddy and luggage.’

Patrick grinned as they all trooped along the path. ‘I think our kids got not one, but two, Fairy Godmothers when we reconnected with you. Cinderella eat your heart out.’

Patsy looked pensive at this, and said with a slightly wistful smile, ‘I guess we just know how important found families can be.’

Shelagh stretched back and gave her hand a sympathetic squeeze. ‘Indeed you do, and it might’ve taken you nigh on two decades to find this one, but we aren’t going anywhere for at least the next three. Not if those faces I can see squashed against the window have a say in the matter, anyway,’ she added with a slightly exasperated laugh as they reached the car.

Patsy hardly heard these last words, being already completely captivated by the sight of their adorable godchildren, and she was as eager as them to say hello. Patrick promptly passed over his keys for her to do the honours. The doors unlocked, she laughed as she was leapt upon by both girls, and it was a while before she caught her breath enough to offer, ‘ _Léi hóu,_ May, Angela.’

 _‘Ńgh ōn_ , Patsy,’ they trilled back together, grinning at their own unison.

She smiled too, genuinely impressed they had kept up their learning. ‘ _Hóu hóu_ ,’ she said as she straightened up, ‘very good. But we need to remember to use English as well, so we don’t leave your parents out, okay?’

They nodded seriously, but voiced their agreement in the same slightly excitable singsong tone. ‘Yes, Aunty Patsy.’

She bit her lip to stop herself from bursting out laughing at hearing her title spoken aloud – it was rather different from reading it in a letter. She nevertheless managed to maintain composure by sharing a quick glance with her sweetheart, whose meaningful nod put her back on track. ‘Now, girls,’ she went on, ‘do you think you could take some of your things inside so your Aunty Delia has space to pick up your _sai lóu_?’ They nodded again, guided by her gesture towards the little boy still sitting in the car, and she smiled at their comprehension. Then she took a hand each to walk them both around to the boot, saying ‘ _M̀h gōi_ ,’ as a combined expression of gratitude and praise.

Delia, meanwhile, talked to the toddler she could now swoop into her arms. ‘ _Helo,_ Teddy, _bach,_ ’ she said brightly, giggling as he yawned. ‘Food, bath and bed for you, then, Master Turner?’

‘I think so, yes,’ Shelagh put in almost apologetically from a few feet away, where she had now been roped into finding an errant doll. ‘Are you sure you’re all right with the three of them?’

Her former colleague donned her professional persona and nodded confidently. ‘You manage excellently every day, and often alone,’ she replied calmly, ‘so I think we’ll cope just fine between the two of us for less than a fortnight.’

Shelagh sighed, chuckling, ‘I suppose I do. Thank you. I was going to suggest we take Teddy if it’d be too tough, but I’m unsure how well that would go over with the Sisters.’

Delia shook her head vehemently now. ‘We’ll be grand,’ she insisted, reassurance ringing in her tone. ‘And besides, this little teddy bear and I have _cwtch_ time to catch up on. Don’t we?’ she asked the young boy, tapping him gently on the nose.

He laughed happily. ‘I’ll take that as a “yes”, then,’ Shelagh said with a relieved grin, returning her attention to the search for the doll.

‘And I’ll take that as the signal I’m allowed to get you settled inside, eh?’ Delia went on, continuing her habit of directly addressing the young child so he would hopefully feel secure regardless of his understanding of her actual words. Before making good on her intention, however, she asked a question of her rather preoccupied fiancée. ‘Are you all right with the girls if we go in, Patsy? I just don’t want our youngest guest getting chilled.’

The redhead nodded, despite the covertly desperate glances she was exchanging with Shelagh because the doll was still proving elusive. ‘We’re just fine, aren’t we?’ she confirmed cheerily with both their goddaughters.

Clinging to her confidence, they nodded, waved Delia and Teddy off along the path, and said, ‘Ye-es,’ although there was evidence of the beginnings of wobbling lips.

Shelagh sighed, and made a joke in hopes of easing all their tension. ‘I’m going to have to turn your knickers out on the pavement, at this rate, aren’t I?’

Both girls giggled, uncertain whether the suggestion would be terrifically funny or very embarrassing, but it did its job – providing not just the release of laughter but a reminder. ‘You wrapped her _up_ in our knickers,’ Angela exclaimed.

Shelagh tried her best to investigate the truth of her daughter’s statement in a surreptitious fashion, since they were, as she had commented, still on the street. Eventually, after some delicate excavation, the object of concern was revealed. ‘So I did, Angela,’ she said, bending to press a soft kiss to the girl’s hair, and pulling her sister into a hug to demonstrate equal affection for each of them. ‘Now, you two, shall we take all this into the house so you can wash your hands before you eat? Daddy will come too, and then we’ll say goodbye for a little over a week.’

They nodded, but their eyes were round, and suddenly their clinginess was much less for the novelty of “Aunty Patsy” and much more for the predictability of their parents. Both girls stretched their arms up expectantly in a wordless request to be carried. Shelagh shot Patsy an apologetic look, but the younger woman simply smiled, whispering, ‘Sometimes it seems like only a cuddle from your mother will fix things. I know how they feel.’ She said the last bit in a very proper English voice so as not to alert the children, but to her fellow adult the vulnerability was clear.

‘Oh, sweetheart,’ the Scot said, her accent thicker with emotion, ‘may I offer one in proxy?’

Patsy only nodded slightly, but that was enough for her to be immediately enveloped in a tight embrace of her own. ‘Thank you,’ she mumbled, blinking a bit awkwardly when she straightened up to find Patrick next to them as well, and May now in his arms.

He just smiled, and Shelagh mirrored his expression, stooping to pick Angela up. Then they all walked into the house, stopping briefly in the hallway to notice the calendar Delia had made for the length of the holiday, in the shape of a caterpillar with circles for each day so they could count down. The girls were thrilled but, when asked about it once they were all in the kitchen, the Welshwoman refused to take total credit. ‘I made it, but it was Patsy’s idea,’ she insisted, blushing, bouncing Teddy on her knee.

Her English fiancée shrugged, feeling very foreign. ‘Some of the girls at school used to have them,’ she said simply, choosing not to add that she had never bothered, because there was really no distinction between term time and holidays in her case.

But everyone seemed satisfied with her answer, and the thought in itself served to settle things enough that goodbyes went fairly smoothly, so they were shortly alone with their three charges – whose shyness had apparently left with their parents.

‘Are we having spaghetti Bolognese with chopsticks again?’ May asked eagerly, speaking slowly to get her mouth around the big words.

‘We might be,’ Delia answered, tapping her nose. ‘Why don’t I put Teddy in his highchair and you come with me to see what’s in that big pot on the stove?’

‘Me too,’ Angela pleaded.

‘You too, yes,’ Patsy reassured, nodding.

‘Yaaaaaaaaaay,’ they shrieked together, jumping up.

Their dual curiosity was quenched after seeing the sauce, but it was replaced by a desire to eat immediately, which their godmothers could only accept was natural after the long journey and day. But Delia needed to put the spaghetti on, so Patsy persuaded them to wait by shepherding them to the bathroom for handwashing (although the kitchen sink would have been quicker). Then they sat as a five around the table again, where the girls said a quiet grace, and the food led to a curious combination of noisy laughter and hungry silence. Teddy threw most of his on the floor, and was coaxed to eat only a few strands of plain pasta, but Shelagh had warned in her initial telephone call that meals were usually a mission. And his refusal was more than made up for by his sisters’ clean plates. Besides, Garbo was a very happy vacuum cleaner hound.

When everyone was finished, the two women swapped roles, Patsy spiriting a tired little Teddy upstairs for his bath and bedtime while her fiancée held the older girls in raptures with some Welsh carols. Once the toddler was settled into his cot (only recently constructed, having been borrowed from one of the kind mothers in their community), the gathering on the lounge floor grew, as Angela and May were allowed to choose a book each for after _their_ bath. May’s selection surprised them all, since it was not a story but the atlas.

‘Show me Hong Kong, please, Aunty Patsy?’

The sentence was so significant, despite its obviously simple phrasing, that her godmother could only nod at first, flipping through to find the page and point out the city. ‘ _Hái nī douh_ ,’ she said, ‘here.’

Both girls stared, fascinated, then Angela piped up, ‘Are you from there, too? Is that how you know Chinese?’

Delia covertly rubbed her back, checking she was comfortable with the conversation, and she leant gratefully into the contact as she continued talking. ‘No, but I was born somewhere else in China. Shanghai. Here,’ she said, finding it and pointing again. ‘But then, when I was even smaller than you are, my family moved over to Singapore.’ She deflected from how difficult the subject was by searching and pointing for a third time. ‘Here, see?’

They nodded, and she relaxed a little, but now May had another question. ‘Why did you leave?’

Patsy looked around for Delia’s guidance, and their almost-matching blue eyes had a silent exchange. The older woman’s eyebrows showed she was wary of honesty in case it caused upset, and her younger fiancée signalled that she understood. But the brunette also tapped her temple, a careful but clever reminder of her accident, which the redhead knew was a reference to people’s assumptions about her own understanding. Not that she was suggesting a _detailed_ explanation, they were both sensitive enough to know that was not sensible in the least, but a very basic sketch would help them feel things were not being hidden.

All of these concerns were cut across by the same childlike innocence they were hoping to protect, though, as May tried a different angle. ‘Did your _màh mā_ die, too?’ she asked quietly, clambering onto Patsy’s lap and reaching up to stroke her cheek.

Her godmother grabbed the small hand in her own, then kissed it, and pulled the girl closer for both their comfort, before nodding. ‘She did, yes,’ she said, keeping her voice soft, ‘and then my _bàh bā_ moved to Hong Kong, so I learnt Cantonese when I visited him. That’s the type of Chinese we speak together,’ she explained, amazed at how easy it had been to say, after all.

Both girls nodded again, eyes wide in awe. Angela stayed quiet, thinking, but the knowledge of this extra similarity seemed to make May want to talk _more_ instead of less. ‘ _Jit ōi seuhn bin_ ,’ she replied.

Patsy was shocked – not only to hear the expression which had begun the majority of conversations with her father’s staff and business associates following his death, but that such a young child even had it in her consciousness. But she supposed it made sense in the context of May’s start in life, so just said, ‘ _M̀h gōi_ ,’ with a small smile before changing the subject completely. ‘But I think we need some fun time before bed, so how’s about a splash in the bath?’

Delia’s face clearly said she would offer no help in cleaning up the chaos Patsy had unleashed with her invitation, but the girls shrieked with joy, and she merely shrugged. All that mattered over the next ten days was that they were happy and healthy. Besides, she liked cleaning. So she beckoned them all upstairs, the only condition being that they would not wake Teddy, and between them the two women bundled them into the bath for the promised chance to play. Framing the activity as “fun” actually made it easier to accomplish, and soon they were secure in the pyjamas Patsy had grabbed earlier when bathing their brother. The tricky task came in convincing the girls to sleep along the corridor.

Their godmothers knew it was best to set boundaries on the first night, but their resolve was weak.

So they snuggled up like sardines – and all slept better for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cantonese translations that aren't given in the text or obvious from context -
> 
> Ńgh ōn: Good afternoon  
> sai lóu: Younger brother  
> M̀h gōi: Thank you  
> Jit ōi seuhn bin: lit. I hope you will restrain your grief, but more like 'I hope you aren't overwhelmed'. (Primary Cantonese expression of condolence)
> 
> Thanks for reading, and apologies to any native Cantonese speakers for my pretty terrible transliterations.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Towards the end of their time together, May gets anxious, so Patsy and Angela help her to talk about why.
> 
> CN: Implied difficulty with eating/food, gentle discussion of bullying, implied racism, brief concerns about period typical homophobia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> After a few busy weeks preparing for a performance yesterday, I've finally managed to finish the second chapter of this short story. And I'm glad, because it's full of cross-cultural female solidarity, and today is International Women's Day! So I hope you enjoy, and that all of the awesome womxn in this community have people who are celebrating them. Banding together in an inclusive, intersectional and international way seems especially important right now - and I'm certainly grateful for this fandom.
> 
> An extra shoutout to Jojo_In_The_Shadows for being a brilliant 'irl' friend and also reading this chapter through. Go check out her stuff and give her a boost today, please.

‘ _Haih gam dō, m̀h gōi_.’

Patsy bit her lip to hold back a giggle at May’s polite choice of words as her goddaughter pushed away her plate of half-eaten toast. She was sure she had never said these words herself, and they must therefore be another overhang from very early interactions. ‘ _M̀h sái_?’ she replied, hoping, if the “no” was posed as a question, it might convince the young girl to reconsider.

The strategy was unsuccessful, as May simply repeated her words as a statement, shaking her head for emphasis. ‘ _M̀h sái_.’

The older woman was a little concerned. Teddy had been tricky about food for the whole holiday, but both his younger sisters had so far eaten very well. And May especially had been particular about clearing her plate – a habit Patsy could relate to from her own childhood. So the change in attitude seemed strange; until she caught sight of her fiancée’s raised eyebrow in her periphery. ‘What?’ she whispered.

Delia bit her lip, too, also holding back a laugh. ‘What do you think, Patience “No, I’m fine with coffee” Mount?’ she returned in an equally low voice.

The redhead blushed as comprehension dawned. ‘Oh,’ she said, the sound more akin to a sigh than actual speech. Then, recovering, she decided to use this _other_ revelation from her childhood as a way in for further conversation. She of all people knew trauma created complex and often paradoxical responses. So she just smiled and asked another question. ‘ _Dím gáai_?’ Her hope was evident in how she let the upward inflection hang, but May merely shrugged. She was about to admit defeat, but then she considered a third possible effect of the girl’s early instability, which might have been masked by her apparently advanced vocabulary, and offered an alternative way to answer. ‘English is okay, too,’ she reminded gently. ‘It’s good that we can speak both.’

The small girl nodded timidly, and spoke up at last, albeit quietly. ‘My tummy hurts.’

Her godmother mirrored her movements, sighing properly now with relief at having achieved a response. ‘Okay, sweetheart,’ she said kindly, ‘do you want to come over here so I can have a feel?’

May shook her head now. ‘Not that sort of hurt.’

Patsy was even more relieved. ‘Are you anxious?’ This got a nod. ‘Okay, do you know what about?’ May shook her head. ‘Would you like us to work it out together?’ May nodded again, and her godmother grinned. ‘I think that’s a task that needs cuddles, then,’ she coaxed, pushing her chair back slightly and patting her lap.

May smiled now. Before the little girl could move, however, her sister joined the conversation at last, and piped up, ‘Me too!’

Checking in with her youngest goddaughter to be sure the company would feel comfortable, Patsy nodded once May grinned even wider. ‘Okay,’ the older woman said, adjusting plans accordingly, ‘why don’t we all have snuggles on the sofa? Garbo can come too, if you’d like.’

Both girls squealed happily, which made Delia laugh. ‘I think that’s a brilliant idea,’ she put in. ‘Teddy and I can go and get ready for the day and join you, can’t we, _bach_?’ she asked, reaching over to his highchair to tickle his currently pyjama-clad tummy. He laughed, too, so she stood up and swooped him into her arms.

Pushing her own chair back further, her fiancée mirrored her movement, and called to their goddaughters, ‘Come on then, you two,’ as she whistled for their dog. All three bounded out of the kitchen, and raced down the corridor, making Patsy shake with hastily supressed chuckles as she heard them collapse onto the couch. She fought to regain her composure whilst walking to join them in the lounge, and bit her lip to stop her smile at the sight which greeted her when she got there. Perhaps she ought to be stern and reinforce the rules about the couch being invitation-only for their canine companion, but they all looked so cute she could not bring herself to break them up – at least any more than was necessary for her to participate in the cuddles as well. So, instead of getting irritated, she just said, ‘Room for me?’ knowing the girls would giggle at the thought of it being a request and not an order.

Once the four of them were settled, laughter gave way to anxiety again, as May looked worried and whispered, ‘I’m sorry, Aunty Patsy.’

Her godmother gazed at her in genuine confusion. ‘Whatever for, sweetheart?’

‘I didn’t finish my toast,’ the youngest girl said simply, her voice a little louder but still very small.

‘I see,’ Patsy responded seriously, wanting to be clear she would never dismiss her goddaughter’s concerns. ‘Well, _I’m_ sorry something has made your tummy hurt so much you didn’t want it.’

May’s eyes widened at the unexpected reply. ‘Really?’ she asked, wriggling onto the earlier-offered lap for reassurance.

‘Really,’ Patsy repeated, nodding for emphasis. ‘It’s never nice being anxious, is it, Angela?’ she went on, deciding it might be useful to include the older girl in the conversation again.

The question was answered by a blonde head shaking and a small body snuggling closer in so she could reach her sister’s hand. ‘No,’ Angela agreed, before bravely posing her own query. ‘Do _you_ get anxious, Aunty Patsy?’

The redhead knew she was blushing beetroot, but the children somehow gave her courage, so she nodded again and admitted, ‘Yes. A lot. And sometimes _I_ don’t eat my toast.’

Two pairs of eyes stared as both girls gasped in shock at this revelation. Patsy watched them, bemused, until Angela giggled and asked something else. ‘Doesn’t Aunty Delia tell you off?’

Her godmother grinned in spite of herself, then shook her head. ‘Nope. She gets a bit worried, but not cross, because she knows how our minds can make us feel strange.’

May perked up a little. ‘So _you_ aren’t cross with _me_?’

Patsy shook her head a second time, still smiling. ‘Not at all. I only want to help,’ she promised, emphasising her intention with a gentle hug. Then, in a soft voice, she went on. ‘Shall we try and sort out how you’re feeling?’ May murmured in agreement, but volunteered nothing further, so she tried to offer a structure. ‘Is it something about being here?’ Black hair shook beneath her chin. ‘Okay then, is it something about home?’

May nodded now, and managed four words. ‘Don’t want to go.’

Patsy pursed her lips to halt the surprised intake of breath the unexpected answer inspired. Mostly so she did not shock the sensitive young girl after she had been so open but partly also because she needed to proceed carefully as she replied. ‘Well, we’ve still got two days together,’ she started, ‘so you aren’t going _anywhere_ just yet.’ She leant down to kiss her goddaughter’s scalp, and waited until she felt her relax before continuing. ‘But won’t you be excited to see your parents?’

The nod she received was eager despite the previous reply, and matched by the louder volume of May’s voice. ‘Yes. I like being with Mummy and Daddy,’ she said firmly. Then, though, she got quiet again, and added, ‘But I like being here, too. No-one laughs at me.’

Her godmother was now perturbed, having an inkling of the issue, but kept her tone calm as she tried to get proper clarity. ‘What do you mean, darling? Who laughs at you at home?’ she prompted gently.

The small girl slipped into silence again, dropping her head downwards in shame, so the older woman held the space for her, kissing her hair again. Then her sister spoke up. ‘Not at home, Aunty Patsy, at school. The other children laugh at her. At both of us,’ Angela explained, squeezing the hand she had somehow been holding this whole time.

The redhead’s breath caught as her suspicions were confirmed, but she made sure her face stayed impassive, aware the blonde girl was watching her intently to gauge her reaction. Then, taking Angela’s free hand and tightening her grip on May’s tummy ever so slightly, she responded in what she hoped was a soothing manner. ‘Oh, sweethearts, I’m so sorry.’

The girls burrowed even closer against her body, and it almost seemed as though they wanted to get _inside_ her, so she let the quiet intimacy linger for as long as she could. But she felt she needed some more information, so she asked another question. ‘Do you know why?’ It sounded a bit simplistic as she said it, but she wanted to ensure neither of them were overwhelmed, so she hoped they would understand.

And Angela did, at least, as she nodded seriously. ‘They say we aren’t a real family and I’m not her real sister and Mummy and Daddy aren’t really her parents.’

Patsy wanted to howl with rage, but that was utterly inappropriate, since she was the adult in the situation. She was also uncertain how much Angela knew about her own adoption, if anything at all. So she just hummed in sympathy, hoping they would relax, then said, ‘Well, there’s no such thing as a “real” family. They come in all shapes and sizes. Just like people.’

May found her words after that. ‘Mummy says that too. But the other children don’t know that. That’s why I like being here with you and Aunty Delia. You have your own kind of family.’

The older woman felt her colour rise at the innocent comment, and fought to control her breath as it grew fast and shallow. She could not let on (outwardly, anyway) how much the sentence made her panic, even as it simultaneously filled her with joy to think that it might mean their goddaughters had just noticed the connection she shared with Delia and accepted it without judgement. For, whilst she was fairly confident by this point that _Patrick and Shelagh_ “knew” and did not mind, she was not in the least bit sure that they wanted their _children_ to know. And it was absolutely not her call to make with regards to telling them. So she was now cursing that they had not been more careful. She ought to have discussed it in depth with Delia beforehand, and (at any rate) they should have been stricter about pushing their beds apart and insisting the girls slept in the spare room.

Yet they had done none of these things and she realised, as she sat snuggled between two small bodies, she was actually rather glad. There was no need to make a big deal, after all, and their mutual comfort went far beyond whatever boundaries society might insist on setting up. More importantly, May was waiting for more interaction, and it was Patsy’s responsibility to be supportive. So she simply said, ‘I’m glad you feel safe with us. It’s important.’ Then she smiled as dark eyes looked up to meet her own lighter ones, each shining with equal amounts of gratitude, and (seizing the fact that they were communicating through eye contact as well as touch for a moment) chanced asking two questions. ‘Have you told your parents what the children say? Or Tim?’

The girls apparently found the mention of their older brother hilarious, as they both burst out laughing. ‘No,’ Angela answered when she could get her words together again, ‘he wouldn’t help. He’d never beat anyone up.’

Patsy bit her lip to stop herself smirking at the thought of the gentle, gangly teenager being violent towards people. Not to mention children. Even for the sake of protecting his beloved sisters. Then she tutted, and counselled, ‘I don’t think fighting is the way to fix something like this, I’m afraid. But you also shouldn’t have to keep quiet about it. So have you talked to Mummy?’

Black hair shook sullenly. ‘ _She_ would talk to the teachers.’

The redhead nodded. ‘She would. Don’t you want that, darling?’

The small girl stiffened in her grasp. ‘ _No_!’ she insisted. ‘The children would laugh at us more.’

The older woman sighed, wishing she could argue the contrary, then settled for a compromise. ‘Maybe _I_ could talk to Mummy, then, and tell her how worried you are about everything? That way Aunty Delia and I could help her and Daddy decide what to do?’

The idea seemed to satisfy their concerns, because two heads bounced up and down in eager unison, at which point Garbo got excited and leapt off the couch. He raced in wide circles across the carpet, and his antics threw the girls into a frenzy of giggles. Patsy tried, at first, to calm everyone down. However, it quickly became clear she had no hope whatsoever of succeeding, so instead she conceded defeat and joined in their delight. This was the scene which greeted Delia as she got downstairs. ‘Gosh,’ she breathed, struggling to keep a now much more awake and wriggling Teddy balanced on her hip for fear he might get hurt in the flurry of movement if she allowed him on the floor. ‘What have you four been up to whilst we were getting dressed?’

Her fiancée attempted to answer, stuttering, ‘Oh – Deels –’, but even this barest minimum of speech proved too much.

As the brunette watched her redheaded lover laugh with such unbridled joy, she was so relieved that the atmosphere had shifted from the earlier anxiety that she felt quite content to stay put. But the little boy in her arms was begging to be let down, so she turned to him and said, soothingly, ‘They _are_ silly, aren’t they, _bach_?’ Then, observing that emotions were escalating to the stage where they might soon be hysterical and knowing she needed to take charge, she went on a little louder. ‘Right, I think we could all use some fresh air. Come on, park.’ With that announcement, she whistled for their dog; a sound that made the woman who was already essentially her wife sit upright too.

‘Yes,’ Patsy agreed contritely, fumbling in her pocket for her handkerchief. ‘Although we are having an awful lot of fun right here.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cantonese translations:
> 
> Haih gam dō, m̀h gōi – That’s all, thank you.  
> M̀h sái – No.  
> Dím gáai? – Why?
> 
> Thanks so much for reading!


End file.
